Taj Taher

ENG 281
20 November 2012

Violence: Just a Part of Everyday Life? Short Paper 4

Tabula rasa. These two simple words define an entire branch of psychology. Translated
as blank slate, this phrase describes the belief of behavioral psychologists that human beings
are born devoid of anything in way of consciousness, and that slowly as a result of accumulated
interactions with the environment, personalities and behaviors are formed. Children in particular
are prone to copying what is presented in front of them, and taking on behaviors that older
people would be aware of avoiding. A common example of this is the correlation between violent
children and violence presented in media. However, one influence that always seems to be
overlooked is literature. Many write off childrens literature as fun and harmless, but there are
many examples of graphic and violent imagery and detail that could make an impression on
children. In particular, the Grimm Brothers Hansel and Gretel merits an academic
investigation in the realm of behavioral psychology due to its validation of the use violence in
the name of justice, an idea that from a childs black and white perspective could influence them
to commit violence.
Hansel and Gretel was written in a time when violence was not looked down upon or
censored to the extent that it is today. It was simply a part of everyday life. But those social
norms clash with the socially acceptable behaviors of modern society, a contrast that would not
matter to children at all. This problem arises when the story goes She waddled up the oven and
stuck her head through the oven door. Then Gretel gave her a push that sent her flying inside and
shut the iron doorGretel ran away, and the godless witch was miserably burned to death
(213). Any child reading this story would not give a second thought to the fact that Gretel just

murdered a woman, and not in any way, but by roasting her alive. To the children, it is a
triumphant defeat of evil, and it could even be said that because the witch was so evil, she
deserved what she got. It is clear that this polar situation in which good defeats evil could instill
in children the concept that those who commit evil deeds deserve to be punished, and terribly so.
Here, the act of murder is painted in a positive light and it completely dulls the magnitude of
taking a life. By downplaying such a crime against humanity, Hansel and Gretel paves the way
for an incorrect sense of morality in children.
Working in conjunction with the previous example, another striking feature of Hansel
and Gretel is the level of casualness it takes with death. The best example of this can be found
in one of the final paragraphs, reading, The man had not a single happy hour since he had
abandoned his children in the forest, and in the meantime his wife had died (214). This clause
about the wifes death is tacked on at the end of the story without so much as a moan or mutter.
This may be because death, in the time the story was written, was a part of daily life (the life
expectancy was far lower along with infant and child mortality being far higher). On top of that
though, there is the notion that a big deal is not made out of the wifes death because she
deserved it. The audience is relieved and maybe even happy that the wife died because of her
evil, and once more the Grimm Brothers present that idea that death and killing is acceptable for
those who commit evil, that in some way, they deserve to die. At the time, that was a common
theme, but for adults in the present age, the prospect would be terrifying. Children however,
would not know any better, and they too would be influenced by this centuries old tale into
believing that the taking of a life is justified when it comes to the struggle between good and
evil.
Clearly, beneath the magic and the witches and the candy coated houses, Hansel and
Gretel harbors the potential to imprint a false justification of murder through the casual violence

presented in it. From a childs polarized perspective of the world, if someone does wrong by
them, that person is bad just like the witch from the story; while this does not mean that the
child will throw someone in an oven, they could seek a violent form of retribution. It becomes
apparent that deciding that someone deserves pain and misery without considering that the world
is not black and white and that various factors should be considered is a flawed moral message,
and unfortunately one embedded within the Grimm Brothers tale. Despite this, Hansel and
Gretel is still regarded as a classic, and children continue to read it. Sure, it may have been
censored to fit the times, but in the end, the witch and the mother both die, and we the audience
celebrate it. Even if we do not all run rabid through the streets murdering people, when we
witness death while clutching desperately to our own lives, on some level buried deep down
within our souls, we are okay with it; and that is far more frightening than a witch could ever be.